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Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

CHICAGO -- Trade activity has been generally quiet surrounding the Reds lately, but the CC Sabathia trade from the Indians to the Brewers appears to have unkinked the transaction wire.

With his club only four games under .500 entering Tuesday, Reds general manager Walt Jocketty hasn't publicly indicated whether his team would be buyers or sellers.

"I think things will start opening up more to react to that deal," Jocketty said at Wrigley Field on Tuesday. "I would expect to see things start to move a bit now. I can tell you I have been getting more phone calls."

Meanwhile, the Sabathia trade to the Brewers will have an almost immediate ripple effect on the Reds. He is scheduled to pitch on Sunday vs. Cincinnati after he already worked eight scoreless innings against them for Cleveland on June 27.

"It's a good move on their part," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "I just wish he had gone to another division. We have a lot of games left with [Milwaukee]."

A short time later, the National League Central-leading Cubs answered the third-place Brewers' trade by acquiring pitcher Rich Harden from the A's in a six-player deal.

The Reds will have 13 potential free agents at season's end, including Adam Dunn and Ken Griffey Jr. There have been no rumors surrounding either star player and interest is believed low. Scouts instead appear to be looking at reliever David Weathers and catcher David Ross. The Marlins, after losing starting catcher Matt Treanor to an injury, are reported to possibly have an increased interest in Ross.

Jocketty would not discuss specific players he could be talking about with other GMs. This could be a big week in determining which route he goes. If the Reds have a good six-game road trip through Chicago and Milwaukee before the All-Star break, the current team could stay intact longer. If it's a bad trip -- players could be more easily jettisoned if there's a match.

"We're trying to win as many games as we can," Jocketty said. "With this team we have, I think we're still a competitive team. We are a team that can continue to play well and get to .500. If there are things we can do to make us better, yeah. We'll look at whatever opportunities are out there that can improve the club in the present and future."

One move that shouldn't be expected is a trade of rotation ace Aaron Harang. A recently published report indicated Harang could be potential trade bait because Jocketty hadn't included Harang on his "untouchables" list. That story was downplayed.

"I don't want to get into who is available or not available," Jocketty said. "You can't ever say you won't talk about anybody. But it's pretty difficult to talk about certain players. And I would put Harang in that category."

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

It's really sad that our most expensive players, and I'm not including just Dunn and Griffey at all, are unmovable. I would put those two plus Freel, Gonzalez, and Arroyo are also in this group. Of course, Freel and Gonzalez are on the DL (and lilkely to be for the rest of the season), but our hands are tied. We have expensive corner outfielders who cannot be moved because no one wants them. We have a shortstop who has barely played and a utility man being paid what a position player is paid. I'm sure folks want Bruce or Encarnacion or others (including Weathers and Ross), but no one (and I mean no one) wants Valentin, Patterson, and Bako.

This roster is so messed up. I don't envy Walt Jocketty. This club is poorly put together from the start. It's a testament to someone (and I'm not sure who) that we're only 5 games underr .500.

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Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

"My mission is to be the ray of hope, the guy who stands out there on that beautiful field and owns up to his mistakes and lets people know it's never completely hopeless, no matter how bad it seems at the time. I have a platform and a message, and now I go to bed at night, sober and happy, praying I can be a good messenger." -Josh Hamilton

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

Originally Posted by OnBaseMachine

Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

"We're trying to win as many games as we can," Jocketty said. "With this team we have, I think we're still a competitive team. We are a team that can continue to play well and get to .500. If there are things we can do to make us better, yeah. We'll look at whatever opportunities are out there that can improve the club in the present and future."

I already knew this weeks ago.

I already know it next year.

I wonder how many canned speeches and comments I have heard over the years from that organization when they knew they were not in position to do anything to rectify their situations. Their budget, their plan, speaks volumes.

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

“He’s a huge addition to our team. That’s a big trade for us. It doesn’t guarantee success or doesn’t guarantee wins, but it sure does make your team that is already pretty good a whole lot better,” Dempster added.

CHICAGO (AP)—One day after the Milwaukee Brewers landed an ace, the Chicago Cubs answered.
Intent on ending their 100-year drought without a World Series title, the NL Central leaders acquired talented right-hander Rich Harden in a six-player deal with the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday.

With CC Sabathia going to Milwaukee, Harden was the best available pitcher, Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said.

“We felt that the two high end guys who would possibly be available were the two that have already been traded. Those are legit one and two starters. So we tried to focus on trying to acquire one,” Hendry said.

“It certainly wasn’t a reaction move. We would have gladly had Rich two or three weeks ago.”

The Cubs began play Tuesday 3 1/2 games ahead of the Cardinals and four in front of the Brewers in the NL Central

The Cubs can now match Milwaukee’s one-two combination of Sabathia and Ben Sheets with All-Star Carlos Zambrano and Harden.
Athletics general manager Billy Beane said trading Harden doesn’t mean his team is in selling mode. Oakland began the day six games behind the first-place Los Angeles Angels in the AL West and 3 1/2 behind the Boston Red Sox in the wild-card race.

“I don’t necessarily think we’ve taken a step back. I think we’ve taken a step forward for the next three to five years,” Beane said. “We were balancing that the club’s playing well but also keeping in mind that we’ve had numerous injuries over the last week. “
Hendry also talked with the Indians about Sabathia and said conversations with Beane about Harden have been ongoing for three or four weeks.

“I knew Rich was going to make his start Sunday, no matter what. At the same time, my chats with (Indians GM) Mark Shapiro, I think if he liked the deal he got he was going to try to do it before CC’s turn. It had nothing to do with the timing,” Hendry added.

“I heard it was going to happen. Still it’s always a surprise,” Harden said. “It’s a bit of a shock but it will be good. They’ve got a good team and a chance of doing something special.“

Harden, eligible to be a free agent after the 2009 season, is 5-1 with a 2.34 ERA in 13 starts this season. He’s scheduled to make $4.75 million this season.

“We will have the rights for a year and a half, so that’s the other advantage of him not being a free agent,” Hendry said. “He has an option that could vest, or we could pick up the option or we could arbitrate. So he certainly has a chance to be a Cub through the end of next year.”

The oft-injured Harden missed a month earlier this season because of a right shoulder strain. It was his sixth trip to the disabled list in his six-year career.

“Obviously there’s some risk involved. He’s missed some time but he’s never had any surgery,” Hendry said. “We did extensive work with their doctors.”
The Cubs said they expected Harden to join the team Wednesday and pitch either Friday or Saturday at Wrigley Field against the San Francisco Giants.

“This gives us another weapon,” Piniella said. “He’ll fit in here really nice. Let’s keep him healthy and pitching and go from there.”

The Cubs won the NL Central last season but were swept out of the playoffs by Arizona. Without a World Series appearance since 1945 and without a title since 1908, they are obviously making a strong push. The team is also expected to be sold by the end of the season.

“We never looked at it as ‘Oh, we’re going to get in, we’re better than last year, we’ll take our chances if we get in,”’ Hendry said. “There’s a lot of baseball left. We don’t look at it today like we’re getting in for sure. … Our mode all year has been that we will try to get better.”

Gaudin was 5-3 with a 3.59 ERA in 26 games—including six starts for Oakland.
Murton was a former top prospect for the Cubs, but he’s shuttled between Triple-A Iowa and Chicago the past two seasons. He’s hitting .250 in 40 at-bats.
Gallagher is 3-4 with a 4.45 ERA in 12 games, including 10 starts.

“It’s a great opportunity for me to go over there and start every fifth day and keep going,” he said.

Gallagher is expected to start at home Friday against the Angels.

“I’m excited about it,” Athletics manager Bob Geren said of the trade. “We’ve made some great deals the last 12 months and this is another one. (Gallagher is) young and talented and we got a lot of other talent in the deal also. I think it’s going to be another one of these trades where both teams are going to be real happy with it.”

Patterson, the brother of Corey Patterson, was sent to the minors on July 3, and has also been on the frequent shuttle between the Cubs and Triple-A. Patterson was hitting .237 with a homer and seven RBIs in 38 at-bats with the Cubs. He also plays second base.
Donaldson, a catcher for Class A Peoria, was hitting .217 with six homers.

Murton and Patterson will be sent to Triple-A Sacramento. Donaldson may be moved up to Double-A or could be sent to Single A Stockton.

Piniella said the trade should send a message to Cubs fans.

“This shows the Cubs are going to do everything in their power to get where we want to go,” he said.

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

Originally Posted by Spring~Fields

I already knew this weeks ago.

I already know it next year.

I wonder how many canned speeches and comments I have heard over the years from that organization when they knew they were not in position to do anything to rectify their situations. Their budget, their plan, speaks volumes.

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

Nothing good will happen until this team makes a decision on its identity...are they going to honestly try and win now, or are they going to try and win later?

Trying to do both is tough to do, as evidenced by the current situation.

The real Reds team is winning, and have been winning for some time. It is not about winning baseball games, it is about winning in the investment arena.

Baseball is big boys toys Edabbs.

These guys could buy and sell whoever they wanted to be on the baseball team, if they wanted to. Wait? for what? Do you think these guys could not compete with the Cubbies, and Cardinals if they wanted ?

Forget the pennant. The Cincinnati Reds' new ownership group has enough money, brainpower and clout to start a small city.

The group includes three Fortune 500 CEOs and six whose privately held companies rank among Cincinnati's 115 largest.

The companies represented by these investors generate more than $62 billion in annual revenue. They give at least $5 million a year to charity and have lots of political clout.

Some of the Reds' newest investors bought stakes on their own.

Others formed investment partnerships in which the lead investor speaks for the group and shares ownership perks and capital calls on a pro-rata basis. At least 44 people own a piece of the action, according to our research.

The group is larger than that, but we left out names we could not confirm.
Bob Castellini: President of Castellini Co., a fruit and vegetable wholesaler, he became the Reds' CEO Jan. 19. Castellini's ownership group paid about $270 million to acquire the team, financing the purchase with roughly $100 million in debt and the sale of investment units, each costing $6.5 million.

W. Joseph Williams: The chairman of North American Properties also carries the chairman title with the Reds. The company develops retail and apartment properties in six states. Florence and Northgate malls are among its notable Cincinnati projects, although it no longer owns either property.

Tom Williams: The president of North American Properties is also the brother of W. Joseph Williams. Their father was a controlling owner of the Reds from 1982 to 1984. Tom is now the team's vice chairman and treasurer.

Carl Lindner Jr. and Carl Lindner III: Lindner Jr. became a minority investor in the Reds in 1981, and controlling owner in 1999. Until last year, he owned about 37 percent of the ballclub. Now, he and his son hold 7.88 percent.

Louise Nippert: Nippert's late husband, Louis, bought 90 percent of the Reds in the late 1960s, selling a controlling interest to the Williams family in 1982. In January, Nippert sold her remaining 29 percent stake, then bought back 3.94 percent.

William Reik: Reik is a managing director at William D. Witter Inc., an investment advisory firm in New York. He's a director of Frisch's Restaurants Inc. and has owned a piece of the Reds since 1986. His ownership went from 11 percent to 7.88 percent in the new regime.

George Strike: Strike, a former chairman of American Laundry Machine Co., became a Reds owner in 1988. He's a 3.94 percent owner under Castellini, down from 12 percent under Lindner.

Larry Sheakley: Sheakley founded a workers' comp administration company in 1963, but has since branched into other employee benefits.Local broadcasting executive Bobby Lawrence owns a piece of Sheakley's stake.

Jack Wyant: This former Procter & Gamble executive has raised four venture capital funds totaling $600 million since starting Blue Chip Venture Co. in 1992. He is said to have partners, but could not be reached.

Ronald Sargent: A lifelong Reds fan who grew up in Northern Kentucky, this Staples Inc. CEO sought out Castellini when he heard the new Reds owner was selling minority shares in the team.

Jeffrey Gendell: A Wyoming native and son of a Procter & Gamble executive, Gendell runs a $1 billion hedge fund under the name Tontine Associates. He owns roughly 10 percent stakes in AK Steel and CECO Environmental.

Nick Ragland: Howard "Nick" Ragland is an in-law to Batesville's Hillenbrand family and owner of the Gorilla Glue Co. in Fairfax. Ragland formed a partnership in which his children share the Reds stake.

Ed Rigaud: A former P&G executive, now CEO of Enova Partners, he leads a 17-member group, 13 of whom are black. The group includes Ross Love, Ken Blackwell, Nathaniel Jones, Terry Atwater, Carl Satterwhite and Scott Robertson.

George Vincent: The Hamilton County GOP chairman has seven partners, including P&G elites A.G. Lafley, James Johnson and Mike Ryan; Vincent's law partner, Frank Woodside; Tom Neyer Jr.; and Dr. David Schneider.

David Drees: The CEO of Cincinnati's largest privately held company teamed up with his father, Kenton County Judge Executive Ralph Drees, to buy a 3.94 percent stake.

Art Hauser: This '60s vintage NFL lineman is founder of the Hauser Group, a Blue Ash-based insurance brokerage. Hauser is a Castellini pal, said to have teamed up with other investors to buy a piece of the Reds.

But Dunn’s contract, Griffey’s contract, the Reds can’t afford pitching clear back to the Bowden days, and the money that Krivsky wasted on contracts, oh the Reds can’t afford this, or that, oh my the fans grown.

These guys are not concerned with the contracts.

While the statisticians calculators, slide rules and spreadsheets smoking are smoking with compulsive obsessive dedication to find out, the answers alike, with the rest of the fans who sit on the edge of their seats year after year waiting for the slightest news that their favorite team might have made that one big trade. Only to find filler and fodder in their stockings after the winter meetings.

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

The real Reds team is winning, and have been winning for some time. It is not about winning baseball games, it is about winning in the investment arena.

Baseball is big boys toys Edabbs.

These guys could buy and sell whoever they wanted to be on the baseball team, if they wanted to. Wait? for what? Do you think these guys could not compete with the Cubbies, and Cardinals if they wanted ?

Forget the pennant. The Cincinnati Reds' new ownership group has enough money, brainpower and clout to start a small city.

The group includes three Fortune 500 CEOs and six whose privately held companies rank among Cincinnati's 115 largest.

The companies represented by these investors generate more than $62 billion in annual revenue. They give at least $5 million a year to charity and have lots of political clout.

Some of the Reds' newest investors bought stakes on their own.

Others formed investment partnerships in which the lead investor speaks for the group and shares ownership perks and capital calls on a pro-rata basis. At least 44 people own a piece of the action, according to our research.

The group is larger than that, but we left out names we could not confirm.
Bob Castellini: President of Castellini Co., a fruit and vegetable wholesaler, he became the Reds' CEO Jan. 19. Castellini's ownership group paid about $270 million to acquire the team, financing the purchase with roughly $100 million in debt and the sale of investment units, each costing $6.5 million.

W. Joseph Williams: The chairman of North American Properties also carries the chairman title with the Reds. The company develops retail and apartment properties in six states. Florence and Northgate malls are among its notable Cincinnati projects, although it no longer owns either property.

Tom Williams: The president of North American Properties is also the brother of W. Joseph Williams. Their father was a controlling owner of the Reds from 1982 to 1984. Tom is now the team's vice chairman and treasurer.

Carl Lindner Jr. and Carl Lindner III: Lindner Jr. became a minority investor in the Reds in 1981, and controlling owner in 1999. Until last year, he owned about 37 percent of the ballclub. Now, he and his son hold 7.88 percent.

Louise Nippert: Nippert's late husband, Louis, bought 90 percent of the Reds in the late 1960s, selling a controlling interest to the Williams family in 1982. In January, Nippert sold her remaining 29 percent stake, then bought back 3.94 percent.

William Reik: Reik is a managing director at William D. Witter Inc., an investment advisory firm in New York. He's a director of Frisch's Restaurants Inc. and has owned a piece of the Reds since 1986. His ownership went from 11 percent to 7.88 percent in the new regime.

George Strike: Strike, a former chairman of American Laundry Machine Co., became a Reds owner in 1988. He's a 3.94 percent owner under Castellini, down from 12 percent under Lindner.

Larry Sheakley: Sheakley founded a workers' comp administration company in 1963, but has since branched into other employee benefits.Local broadcasting executive Bobby Lawrence owns a piece of Sheakley's stake.

Jack Wyant: This former Procter & Gamble executive has raised four venture capital funds totaling $600 million since starting Blue Chip Venture Co. in 1992. He is said to have partners, but could not be reached.

Ronald Sargent: A lifelong Reds fan who grew up in Northern Kentucky, this Staples Inc. CEO sought out Castellini when he heard the new Reds owner was selling minority shares in the team.

Jeffrey Gendell: A Wyoming native and son of a Procter & Gamble executive, Gendell runs a $1 billion hedge fund under the name Tontine Associates. He owns roughly 10 percent stakes in AK Steel and CECO Environmental.

Nick Ragland: Howard "Nick" Ragland is an in-law to Batesville's Hillenbrand family and owner of the Gorilla Glue Co. in Fairfax. Ragland formed a partnership in which his children share the Reds stake.

Ed Rigaud: A former P&G executive, now CEO of Enova Partners, he leads a 17-member group, 13 of whom are black. The group includes Ross Love, Ken Blackwell, Nathaniel Jones, Terry Atwater, Carl Satterwhite and Scott Robertson.

George Vincent: The Hamilton County GOP chairman has seven partners, including P&G elites A.G. Lafley, James Johnson and Mike Ryan; Vincent's law partner, Frank Woodside; Tom Neyer Jr.; and Dr. David Schneider.

David Drees: The CEO of Cincinnati's largest privately held company teamed up with his father, Kenton County Judge Executive Ralph Drees, to buy a 3.94 percent stake.

Art Hauser: This '60s vintage NFL lineman is founder of the Hauser Group, a Blue Ash-based insurance brokerage. Hauser is a Castellini pal, said to have teamed up with other investors to buy a piece of the Reds.

Is there a franchise in mlb where this isn't the rule rather than the exception?

This is true even in New York and Boston-they can take on the "bad" contracts of others because they know it will help then leverage their huge money making media networks.

Concerning recent Reds history, I'd place incompetence much higher on the list of potential starting points than "show me the money".

"This isn’t stats vs scouts - this is stats and scouts working together, building an organization that blends the best of both worlds. This is the blueprint for how a baseball organization should be run. And, whether the baseball men of the 20th century like it or not, this is where baseball is going."---Dave Cameron, U.S.S. Mariner

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

Nothing good will happen until this team makes a decision on its identity...are they going to honestly try and win now, or are they going to try and win later?

Oh, I think the Reds have a great idea of their identity. Next year's slogan:

"We're going to win now, later!"

Alternately:

"Don't close the door on us missing our window!"

"The problem with strikeouts isn't that they hurt your team, it's that they hurt your feelings..." --Rob Neyer

"The single most important thing for a hitter is to get a good pitch to hit. A good hitter can hit a pitch that’s over the plate three times better than a great hitter with a ball in a tough spot.”
--Ted Williams

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

This roster is so messed up. I don't envy Walt Jocketty. This club is poorly put together from the start. It's a testament to someone (and I'm not sure who) that we're only 5 games underr .500.

Yes, it's a tough job ahead of him. And the tough thing going into next year is that his two expensive corner OF which apparently are in low demand are going to be VERY difficult to replace next year. I hope Hopper/Freel aren't the starting LF next year, but that could very well be possible, due to lack of better options.

The Reds really don't have a surplus of anything to trade, other than perhaps pitching prospects. I'm starting to think that Walt may have to trade Homer and Thompson in order to shore up the lineup.

Thank you Walt and Bob for bringing winning baseball back to Cincy -- it was nice while it lasted..

Nov. 13, 2007: One of the greatest days in Reds history: John Allen gets the boot!

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

Originally Posted by REDREAD

Yes, it's a tough job ahead of him. And the tough thing going into next year is that his two expensive corner OF which apparently are in low demand are going to be VERY difficult to replace next year. I hope Hopper/Freel aren't the starting LF next year, but that could very well be possible, due to lack of better options.

The Reds really don't have a surplus of anything to trade, other than perhaps pitching prospects. I'm starting to think that Walt may have to trade Homer and Thompson in order to shore up the lineup.

You once made a case to defend Bowden on the bases of finance, which was correct, but since it was Bowden I was not willing to support or agree to your points. All I am saying is what happened to Bowden, happened to those that followed him, and will happen to Mr. Jocketty also, without the modern time funding that a major league baseball team requires.

IF the years since the disparity widened 2000-2008 among the immediate competitors in the Reds division and the Reds, mean what they have shown us.

I know that you know, that Bowden use to win, when the team was properly funded in the 90's with less disparity among competitors.

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

I think the Reds have failed to make the necessary bold moves to restructure the major league team. They now face losing Griffey and Dunn with no real return and no obvious plan for replacing them with high level players. The Reds have made major league moves over the years, but they always are piecemeal, adding a piece here, subtracting a piece here. You never get the feeling that the team is being re-structured to fit the GM's vision.

Starting with this trade deadline, still another GM, Jocketty, will have the ability to change the ballclub in a significant way. We'll see if he does over the next seven or eight monts. He has two advantages -- first, a good track record, and second, Dunn and Griffey are free agents so he can't just tread water with them.

If in 2009 it's the same team with a new relief pitcher or a new fifth starter or a couple of good utility players signed to minor league deals, it may be time to tune out.

Re: Jocketty remains quiet about trade plans

Originally Posted by Spring~Fields

You once made a case to defend Bowden on the bases of finance, which was correct, but since it was Bowden I was not willing to support or agree to your points. All I am saying is what happened to Bowden, happened to those that followed him, and will happen to Mr. Jocketty also, without the modern time funding that a major league baseball team requires.

IF the years since the disparity widened 2000-2008 among the immediate competitors in the Reds division and the Reds, mean what they have shown us.

I know that you know, that Bowden use to win, when the team was properly funded in the 90's with less disparity among competitors.

If the Reds are in the predicament that they are in because of payroll disparities, how can the fact that the Diamondbacks, As, Marlins, Rays, and Twins are playoff contenders be explained? All have payrolls that are smaller than the Reds (in some cases staggeringly so) while having teams within their divisions that have a payroll of at least $118M.

"This isn’t stats vs scouts - this is stats and scouts working together, building an organization that blends the best of both worlds. This is the blueprint for how a baseball organization should be run. And, whether the baseball men of the 20th century like it or not, this is where baseball is going."---Dave Cameron, U.S.S. Mariner

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